“What about Chen Qi’s wedding? Are we going?” Considering that Chen Qi was Li Changfeng’s close friend, he might feel obliged to attend the wedding, even if he was not in the mood to celebrate it.
“Go, of course. Second Brother Wei and Lin Fangliang are also attending, so we’ll definitely have to go,” said Li Changfeng. And so, on the day of Chen Qi’s wedding, Li Changfeng and Xu Qing, accompanied by Tuan Tuan, made their way to the Chen family’s already crowded house.
“Hey Second Brother Wei, Changfeng, and Brother Xu, it looks like I beat you guys here,” Lin Fangliang said with a smile as he rolled up his sleeves to greet them.
“You boy! Where are your two little dolls? Why didn’t you bring them?” Second brother Wei exclaimed loudly, causing the nearby villagers to turn their heads. The old Li couple who were standing not too far away also noticed Li Changfeng’s arrival.
Lin Fangliang noticed the curious looks from the people around them and pleaded with second brother Wei in a hushed voice, “Oh, my good brother, please lower your voice! Let’s go somewhere else if you want to be rowdy.”
Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com
Xu Qing, who had Tuan Tuan with him, found it difficult to move around, so he decided to follow a few Amas he knew who were talking and chatting. Meanwhile, Li Changfeng went to look for Chen Qi.
Chen Qi sat in the room wearing his wedding attire. He didn’t look like a happy groom. The stubble on his face suggested that he might not have shaved for a few days, and his big blue and black eyes were expressionless.
Seeing Li Changfeng walk in, Chen Qi’s face twitched, but he remained silent.
Li Changfeng didn’t say much, and quietly took a seat across from Chen Qi. He looked at his good brother, whom he hadn’t seen for so long, but seemed like a completely different person.
After a long period of silence, a hoarse voice slowly emerged from the room, “I don’t want to get married.”
Li Changfeng furrowed his brows upon hearing this. He reached for the glass of water from the table and was about to hand it over, but hesitated when he found it was cold. Thinking of the other party’s voice, Li Changfeng paused and put down the glass.
Seeing Li Changfeng’s movements, Chen Qi’s lips twitched slightly, but then his expression fell again as he thought about his situation.
“If you don’t get married, it will be considered unfilial and there will never be peace in your family.” Li Changfeng explained the reason why Chen Qi had to go through with this marriage.
“Yeah, I know I have no choice, but…” Chen Qi’s face gradually became a little grim, “I am destined to be childless! I don’t want to delay the person in my heart. As for the person who wants to marry in with all his heart, I’ll see if he can achieve his wish! Maybe, if it is with them, it might be possible.”
In the end, Chen Qi stood up angrily.
Li Changfeng raised his head and looked at Chen Qi calmly. He saw tears welling up in the eyes of his usually composed and smiling friend.
While Xu Qing was peeling off some easily digestible snacks for Tuan Tuan, an Ama next to him suddenly pulled the sleeve of his right hand and said, “Ah Qing, look over there.”
Following the other party’s gaze, Xu Qing saw Li Ama staring at him. He handed Tuan Tuan to an Ama from the same village, stood up, and headed straight towards Li Ama. He already knew that Li Ama would not let him and Li Changfeng off today, so he might as well cut to the chase.
Li Ama was a face-saving person, so he gestured for Xu Qing to follow him to a more private location. With a stern expression, he expressed his displeasure: “Don’t you know that a lot has happened in the family? You can’t even come back to visit? Us old people are not yet dead, but you don’t seem to care.”
Xu Qing plucked at the grass beside him and calmly turned his head to Li Ama when he heard the words. He expressed his confusion and replied, “There’s nothing wrong with our family.” After a moment of contemplation, he smiled and said, as if realizing a mistake, “Oh wait, something did happen!”
Li Ama was on the verge of losing his temper upon hearing Xu Qing’s response, but he managed to control his anger when he noticed that Xu Qing realized his mistake. He then deliberately said, “Since you have some understanding of the situation, why don’t you know how to come back home? The third son is causing trouble, and you are the second brother-in-law. You should have persuaded your husband to come home and persuade his younger brother.”
“What? Ama, what are you talking about?” Xu Qing hurriedly said as if he had heard something terrible. “When I said that something happened in our family, I was talking about our family’s Tuan Tuan, like how he can call me ‘Ama’ now and take a few steps while holding onto the wall. This is what happened in our family recently. But why are you talking about the third brother all of a sudden?”
Li Ama was so frustrated by Xu Qing’s nonsense that he couldn’t contain his anger any longer and shouted, “I’m talking about our family! Our family! Which family do you think I’m talking about?!”
“Haha. Ama, you really know how to joke. Of course, what you are talking about is your family’s matter. But don’t forget, Changfeng married into the Xu family. What I said about my family doesn’t concern the Li family.” Seeing Li Ama’s overwhelmed expression, Xu Qing added, “It seems that you are getting old and forgetful.”
A pair of big hands hands wrapped gently around Xu Qing’s shoulders. Xu Qing’s body reacted before his brain had time to process, and he instinctively leaned into the embrace. It was Li Changfeng.
“Second son! You see what your wife did! Did you hear the words he just said?!!” Li Ama fell silent and didn’t say anything more to Xu Qing when he saw Li Changfeng.
Li Changfeng let Li Ama roar wildly. The commotion had caught the attention of nearby villagers, who turned to look in their direction.
“He’s right. Have you forgotten? I already married out, just like Xiao’er. And since you love the third brother so much, it’s no wonder you can’t see things clearly. You still show favoritism towards him and as accommodating as always. Please take care of your health, you two elders.” After speaking, he pulled Xu Qing, who was full of admiration and left the place, leaving only Li Ama with an expression of disbelief.
“What do you mean by this?! I’m partial towards the third child and accommodating him? Isn’t he the most promising one in our family? What’s wrong with me being partial towards him?! What’s going on!! Second child, come back here!”
Li Changfeng tightened his grip on Xu Qing’s hand upon hearing the words from behind. Disappointment flashed in his eyes as he said, “Let’s go. We won’t attend the banquet.”
Earlier, before Li Changfeng and Chen Qi parted ways, Chen Qi had said: “Li Changfeng, if you truly consider me your brother, do not drink the wine at the banquet later. Because, this, my brother, is going to be my sacrificial wine…”
As Xu Qing left with Tuan Tuan, some curious onlookers questioned what had just happened. Xu Qing simply smiled and didn’t elaborate, then left with Li Changfeng. When they reached the gate of Chen’s courtyard, they coincidentally met Zhou Wen and Chen Hong who had just arrived.
“Second brother Li, and who is this?” “Zhou Wen looked at the postures of Li Changfeng and Xu Qing, it didn’t look like they were just coming out to get some air.
“I have some business at home, so I’ll take my leave first.” Li Changfeng didn’t have much feeling for Zhou Wen and Chen Hong, so he replied nonchalantly. Meanwhile, Xu Qing and Chen Hong exchanged a silent glance, but neither of them said a word.
“Is this your wife? He’s so handsome! And the child is so cute and strong too! At first glance, he looks just like you, Brother Li.” Zhou Wen complimented with a smile when he saw Xu Qing and the lively Tuan Tuan in his arms.
Li Changfeng always liked hearing others praise his wife and his child the most, so he showed a rare “kind” smile to Zhou Wen.
“You flatter me.”
Seeing that Xu Qing had been looking at Chen Hong, Zhou Wen quickly spoke up, “My wife is pregnant, which is why we were a bit late for Elder Brother Chen’s wedding. The main reason is that he was having severe bouts of vomiting. I wonder if you know anything that could help alleviate it?”
Before Xu Qing could speak, Li Changfeng spoke with a proud face, “No, my wife is in excellent health and has no issues whatsoever!”
Xu Qing: …… A dog can’t spit ivory out of its mouth.
(T/N: It is a metaphor that bad people can’t say good things. Source: Baidu.)
Zhou Wen didn’t know how to reply to Li Changfeng’s comment, so he just smiled at him and Xu Qing before helping Chen Hong, who hadn’t said a word, into the courtyard.
On their way back home, Xu Qing pondered about Chen Hong’s initial reluctance to meet him and then looked at Li Changfeng who was taller, stronger and more handsome than Zhou Wen. “Did you and Chen Hong grow up together?” he asked.
“No, not at all. Chen Qi and I used to play together, and Chen Hong was just like a little brother to me. But Chen Qi often took him around with us when we were young.” After hearing Li Changfeng’s explanation, Xu Qing realized that Chen Hong might have feelings for Li Changfeng. It was like a young plum that had not yet matured.
Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com
As Xu Qing thought about Chen Hong’s tall and handsome appearance, he couldn’t help but glance at his own petite body. Despite drinking the spiritual spring water, he had grown from a little over 1.6 meters when he first arrived to about 1.7 meters now. However, he still couldn’t match the height of Chen Hong he saw earlier. In modern times, it would be like the difference between a celebrity and their assistant!
However, Xu Qing looked at Tuan Tuan who had fallen asleep in his arms. He already married Li Changfeng and had a child with him. The little *XiaoQing was also married and expecting a child with someone else. Xu Qing slapped his thigh and thought, “This uncle just won his love rival without even knowing. Freaking awesome!”
*(T/N: XiaoQing is a green snake who transforms into a human being after five hundred years of disciplined training in Taoism. She is one of the protagonists of the Legend of the White Snake).
Li Changfeng heard a slapping sound from behind and assumed that Xu Qing and Tuan tuan had accidentally collided with each other. He turned around quickly, only to see Xu Qing holding onto the sleeping Tuan Tuan with a proud and satisfied expression on his face. Li Changfeng was pleased to see his wife in a good mood and happily drove the donkey cart back home.
Both Xu Qing and Li Changfeng soon forgot about the incident at the Chen family and resumed their work in the fields. They focused on harvesting sweet potatoes and potatoes, which were essential for the winter season. The couple stored them in the cellar, ensuring they were properly preserved as part of their winter food reserves.
This afternoon, after finishing his work in the fields, Xu Qing went to pick up Tuan Tuan from Xie Ama. These days, Xie Ama felt content as he spent his time by either taking care of his own grandchildren or helping to look after Tuan Tuan. After hugging Tuan Tuan and bidding goodbye to Xie Ama, Xu Qing headed towards the back of the mountain.
But as Xu Qing walked towards the fork where there were some trees, he noticed a sneaky figure perched on a tree not far away. It wasn’t that Xu Qing was usually a suspicious person or anything, but the figure seemed skeptical.
“Who is it?!”
As soon as Xu Qing made a noise, the figure stumbled and hastily fled. Xu Qing held onto Tuan Tuan and didn’t pursue them. The area was densely covered with trees and had only one fork in the road, making it difficult to follow. Letting out a deep sigh, Xu Qing gently patted the startled Tuan Tuan and hurriedly headed towards home.
RECENTLY UPDATES
